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The Fourth of July at Dewberry Plantation in Bullard

June 27th, 2014

July4ReadingThe Dewberry Plantation was founded under the name Mytle- Vale, when the Dewberry family emigrated from Georgia just prior to the Texas Revolution. The land on which the 1854 mansion sits once encompassed three counties in Texas and the Army of the Republic is said to have once camped on plantation land. In 2001 the plantation home underwent a historical refurb using only period materials, and has been placed on the National Register of Historic Places. Today, the Texas landmark is a favorite location for weddings and various ceremonial events.

So why am I discussing this particular piece of local history now? Because on the Fourth of July, there will be a dramatic reading of the Declaration of Independence, to be preceded and followed by patriotic music. For those wanting a contemplative reminder of the significance of the American birthday, in a historical setting, this may fit the bill. A tour of the grounds will follow the event. Admission to the reading ceremony is free, but the cost of the tour is eight dollars. The event begins at five. For more info visit the following website: www.dewberrryplantation.com . Dewberry Plantation is located at 14007 FM 346, in West Bullard, Texas.

Four Seasonal Passes Tylerites Should Know About

June 4th, 2013

splashFinally, summer is upon us, and after a very cool spring, a mild season may not be too much to ask for. As a single dad it can be something of a part time job just to find summer activities for my very vivacious five year old boy. About every summer or so we here at Tyler TX Directory post an article about local attractions for kids and families, and I don’t want to rehash an old article. There are however, several seasonal passes to area activities that are worth looking into. I’ll start with the one that appeals to me the least.

Splash Kingdom in Canton has been advertising its summer pass on local radio. The cost is $95.00 for a single person, and lasts through the summer months. At first glance this is a great deal. The normal adult fee is nearly $22.00, (fees for children under 42 inches tall are just under $17.00), so obviously, in order to make the pass pay for itself a pass holder need only visit 4 times in the course of the summer break. There are a couple downsides however. The first is particularly relative. Tyler residents have a bit of a drive to Canton, so the odds are actually pretty good that customers in our immediate area would fall short of that many visits. The other drawback is that the pass is non-transferable and additional passes cannot be added. If you’re a young person who drives, or has friends who do, neither of these things are necessarily drawbacks, as you only need to pay for yourself. If on the other hand you have guests or a family it can still amount to a considerable cost, and may make the necessary four visits unrealistic.

SamsungThe Caldwell Zoo is really one of Tyler’s biggest sources of pride, and draws visitors from all over East Texas. Zoo memberships are of course most practical for residents. They can be pricey depending on the size of the family but as they last the entire year they quickly pay for themselves. Memberships for individuals cost around $40.00. To add a guest is another $30.00. They also offer a family package for around $90.00. (The names of the children / grandchildren are attached to the account). Other benefits include discounts for paying guests, and on food and concessions. I really love this pass, especially in the spring and early summer. The only real drawback for me is that as summer progresses the heat makes the visits shorter. Thankfully they are still good during the later months of the year.

Discovery Science Place offers one of the best values in our area, when it comes to memberships. For about $60.00 one adult can bring one child. For around $110.00 dollars customers can purchase a family package. $150 lets customers bring their family and another up to eight. There are a lot of additional benefits to a Science Place membership. I’m not going to list them all here, but they include four free guest passes a year and discounted or free admission to science museums all over the world. Discovery Science is not a large museum but it is a great educational summer stop, particularly as the season starts to heat up, and indoor activities preferred.

parkTyler State Park offers the last season pass I wanted to mention. For $70.00 visitors are entitled to enter the park for the day for free. The daily rate without a pass is only $5.00 and children under twelve are free already, but if readers spend many summer days at the lake; this is really a great deal. Now, the pass doesn’t apply to overnight stays, but it does include a discount on camping fees. This is also a yearly pass, and holders can purchase an additional or “secondary” pass for only $25.00. One of the things I love about this membership is that it can be used throughout the state park system in Texas so it should be fairly easy for this pass to pay for itself.

What To Do For Valentines Day in Tyler Texas?

February 14th, 2012

For guys it is often about the doing, buying, and getting but for the girl all they really want during Valentines Day is time spent just with them. A good long nice conversation without any distractions is the long sought after communication many guys fail to deliver all year long and so for Valentines day maybe take the time to really try and find something meaningful to talk about.

If you are a guy that finds it difficult to come up with things to say when all the pressure of Valentines Day is upon you I recommend going to Toys R Us and picking up a game like “Would You Rather” or many other games like it that offer ice breaker questions that are sure to get you talking and asking questions. Why not bring a few cards with you on your date at the restaurant or venue you plan on going to and simply use them to break the ice through the pressure of Valentines Day.

Before you know it those little cards may just make things good not only for you but for her to as she gets her first long and meaningful conversation with you that she has had in quite some time. Now sometimes relationships have a bit of a role reversal in which the girl is left wondering what to talk about it. In this situation the girl can take this same idea and allow a few cards from an ice breaker board game to get the conversation flowing.

Now you are all probably reading this article for suggestions on actual things to do for Valentines Day in Tyler. Well there are some planned events for today in Tyler and we will list those below but just make sure to include some meaningful coversation because that is really all your date is after. If a little further romantic feelings develop later well you can thank me for helping you. If you are on a first date my suggestion is to keep things low key, friendly, NORMAL, and not too romantic. You see a girl on a first date is not going to want to have too much too soon regarding touchy feely, super personal conversations, and 20 questions grilling. Be normal and funny and if necessary break the ice using the game cards idea if you got nothing.

It’s a little chilly today but if both you are bundled up consider going over to the Rose Garden and experience the Rose Capital of the World up close. Since you live in Tyler might as well make use of the part of our history most closely tied to a day like Valentines.

I would go during lunch, bring a blanket, lunch, and sweets. Spread the blanket out on the grass near the fountain. Feed your significant other grapes, candy, chocolate or something like that and she will likely feel great by all the prioritization and planning that went into making this day special for her.

The Texas state railroad offers a Valentines train ride and dinner but the last day for this was Feb 12th so you really missed out on this idea, too bad! maybe you can do it next year – Texas State Railroad Rusk Texas

Let’s Cook is a business in Tyler next to The Diner and in front of XTC Fitness that offers a date cooking class where you eat and learn to cook all night long. I did this a few months ago and my wife and I had a really fun time. I highly recommend this and at this time they still have 3 spots open for tonights Valentines date night. The chef tonight will be the same chef my wife and I had when we did this and he is a lot of fun. The chef is Al Ippolito and he is Italian, full of culture, fun, and enthusiasm for Italian food. I am sure he will keep you entertained and full of delicious food the entire night.  To see if they have any available spots for tonight call them here: (903) 581-2665. You can visit their website at: http://www.letscooktyler.com/

Date: Feb 14

Time: 6:30-9:30PM

Price: $225/Couple

Availability: Open

Something special is brewing for Valentine’s Day at Let’s Cook! Al Ippolito will demonstrate the preparation of wonderful Italian-inspired appetizers, salad, main course & dessert, while you observe and learn. Bring your own booze. Click here for the menu

You could send a Conan O’Brien Facebook Platonic friend only Valentines Day card but he sneakily slips in that maybe you should be more than that as the video card continues. Check it out on Facebook, rather humorous if I do say so myself.
A movie at Carmike is always a great idea in my book but be sure to slip in a good convo along the way or your date is likely to feel as if this Valentines Day was just like all the other days you never talk to her.

A dinner at Kiepersol Estates Restaurant and winery or Jakes are two really great places to eat with amazing romantic charm about them and I will say that Dakato’s is alright too but those first two just have a little more pizaz. I like Kiepersol the most and for some reason as great as it is I still pay less money for everything than I do at Jake’s and Dakato’s so just one more reason to go with Kiepersol. Kiepersol offers a great Valentines Day lunch so if you want to beat the crowds give their lunch a try.

Get her candy at the Sweet Gourmet in the shopping center where Einstein Bagles is located.

Get her flowers at Walmart because they look so good and yet are still so cheap or pay a little more in the big tent setup at all local Brookshires.

Have a romantic canoe ride down the neches river in Tyler off of highway 64. You can drive down to the neches river which is accessible from Highway 64. Canoe down to the bridge and back and mayeb bring something to drink and eat such as wine and chocolate. It’s your East Texas gondola ride, similar to Venice but much more accessible and a lot cheaper.

Liberty Hall is showing “An Affair to Remember” tonight at 8 pm. Tickets are still available so go check them out here: More info

Skyvue movie theater is a lot of fun as you get to watch a new movie old timey style outdoors on a big screen. You can tune in the sound on your radio and leave the car running with heat or air conditioner. Tonight at 8:30 they will be showing Journey to the Center of the Earth and Red Tails right after. Maybe pack some chocolate covered strawberries to bring with you and stay for one or two movies.

These are all the Valentines Day ideas I have for this year, I hope this helps in some way.

Fourth of July Festivities in Tyler Texas

June 29th, 2011

Wings Over Tyler Air Show

Air Show in Tyler

Tyler Air Show, Wings Over Tyler

Tyler TX AirshowThere are quite a number of Independence Day festivities in the Tyler, East Texas area this year. Of course there will be the traditional fireworks display at Lindsey Field. In fact from what I read, quite a big crowd is anticipated this year. Throughout the day, there will be an assortment of activities and local charities and organizations will be sponsoring events. The cost is ten dollars per car load.

Living Alternatives in Lindale will also be holding its annual fireworks display again this year. This is a great day that’s really much more than just a fireworks show. There are all sorts of events and activities for the kids, including swimming, bounce houses, music and a variety of food vendors on hand. There is also a fishing tournament throughout the day. This is definitely one of my preferred Fourth of July events. Admission is free however a fifteen dollar donation is suggested. For more info see the following page: http://la4th.com/ .

Helicopter in Tyler TXFor those looking for activities throughout the holiday weekend there are a couple of very cool educational things I thought I’d plug. The Historic Aviation Memorial Museum (HAMM) will be holding a static air show display on Saturday, the second of July, the day before the Thunder over Cedar Creek Air Show. The museum holds this event every year as the pilots fly in to perform the following day. HAMM has made arraignments for their historic aircraft to be on display to the public. There is a moderate fee to get up close and personal with the aircraft, (I believe it was five dollars last year), but viewing from the fence line is obviously free. To see my review of last year’s static air show, click on the following link: http://www.tylertxdirectory.com/3027/celebrating-the-4th-in-tyler-tx/ .

Tyler Texas Air ShowFor Tylerites interested in going to an actual air show this year the “Wings Over Tyler Air Show,” will be on Sunday the third. Also at the HAMM terminal (the old Pounds field location for native East Texans), this event seems like kind of a long time coming for our area. It will feature a variety of performances and aircraft, and promises to bring out a lot of visitors. The entrance fee is twenty five dollars a car load, or five dollars per person. For more info on this event visit the following web sites: http://www.tylertxdirectory.com/9031/live-from-the-field-2/ ,http://www.wingsovertylerairshow.com/ .There are certainly other great celebrations in our area this year and a quick Google search will yield more results. But these are some of my personal favorites, and the ones in which I choose to participate. Happy Independence Day East Texas! And don’t forget to enjoy the grill this weekend!

East Texas Helicopters Charter Service

May 31st, 2011


 

I came across this very cool East Texas business this morning. It’s an air charter service called East Texas Helicopters (ETH). As a kid I was watching television in the eighties when shows like Air Wolf, Blue Thunder and most especially Magnum PI ruled the ratings market. Back then, the idea of having one’s own helicopter charter business seemed like the coolest job in the world to me. Much cooler and more attractive than teaching! And as much as I admired “Thomas Magnum,” it was his friend “T.C.” whose job I most wanted. Remember T.C. was the one who owned his own Chopper and flew patrons around the Hawaiian Islands on special tours. I’m fairly sure the day to day ins and outs of the job are not really as glamorous as they were portrayed on television however.

Anyway, come to find out, there is a Helicopter charter business here I East Texas. It seems they service the Tyler, Longview, Kilgore, Jacksonville region. As far as I can tell they’re largely a one ship operation (again much like T.C.), the primary chopper being an R44 Raven II. On their Facebook page however, they do have a couple of other choppers pictured, so I’m not sure how many they actually run. In terms of advertising and public relations, the only web page they operate is linked through KLTV, which is not a terrible strategy in guess, since that’s how I found them. (As I mentioned earlier, they also have a Facebook page). On the site, ETH lists the services they offer. They’re available for tours, aerial photo shoots and surveys, patrolling power lines, or just public rides. The cost comes to almost a hundred dollars for every half hour, which given the cost of fuel these days seems pretty reasonable to me. If I read their pages correctly, it seems they also frequent Canton Trade Days where they offer rides to the fair going public. For more information on this fascinating business, visit their webpage at http://www.kltv.com/category/174993/east-texas-helicopter . Readers can also go to their Facebook page by clicking on the following link: http://www.facebook.com/EastTexasHelicopters?sk=wall . To contact the business directly simply call their office at (903)570-2840; or e-mail them at easttexashelicopters@gmail.com .